The upper house of Spain's parliament on Friday authorized the government of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy to rule Catalonia directly from Madrid, minutes after the restive region declared independence from Spain.

Rajoy is now expected to convene his cabinet to adopt the first measures to govern Catalonia. This could include firing the Barcelona government and assuming direct supervision of Catalan police forces.

In a post on social media, Rajoy called for "calm" across the country, even as he called the Catalonia parliament vote a "crime".

Article 155 of the 1978 Spanish Constitution allows for the suspension of autonomy of regional governments if it "doesn't comply with the obligations of the Constitution or other laws it imposes, or acts in a way that seriously undermines the interests of Spain".

The Constitution states that an absolute majority must approve the article's use.